If Nottingham Forest had drawn then they would have played in the UEL next season because they have a better goal difference than Aston Villa. But Chelsea are not an opponent they can beat easily. What Nottingham Forest have done this season is really amazing. Yes they managed to be in third place in the standings for a long time but they have a number of points that are not much different from the teams below them. Forest have also performed very badly in their last 5 games with only 1 win, 2 draws and 2 losses. Fans are certainly disappointed but this is not City, Arsenal or Liverpool. Nottingham Forest are the underdogs and it would be a miracle if they managed to qualify for European competition. I think this result is very good for them. Yes they can try to fight harder next season.
Ending the season in seventh place in the Premier League standings is not a bad thing for a team like Nottingham Forest because they can still fight in the Conference League like Chelsea did this season and it would also be very good for Nottingham Forest if they were able to become champions in the Conference League next season. But I also hope Nottingham Forest can be more consistent next season so they can compete again in the Champions League zone next season. Because since the beginning of this season, Nottingham Forest's performance has also looked quite extraordinary.
I also think so, what Nottingham Forest have achieved is not too bad, they are indeed proud of their position with the squad they have now, but they can do more and can trouble teams with better quality than them. In the first half of the season their performance was quite good, they continued to compete in the top four, but a long league journey with the squad like this is very normal, in the second half of the season they became inconsistent, but finishing in 7th place is an achievement. Hopefully Forrest can do better next season
I'm not a Nottingham Forest fan, but I'm happy they get the chance to play in the Conference League. They have been great this season and deserve it.